An energy company is developing a $142 million facility in far western Kentucky that will take agricultural waste from local farms and businesses and convert it into a renewable form of natural gas.
Gov. Andy Beshear’s office announced on Thursday that Green Energy Parks plans to build an agricultural waste-to-energy facility in Carlisle County. According to the release, the company will rely on locally sourced agricultural byproducts like corn stover, livestock manure and spent grains from bourbon distillers.
Renewable natural gas comes from biogas, which is produced from organic waste, that undergoes a process that removes impurities and allows it to be used in place of fossil natural gas. The treatment process also removes carbon dioxide from the biogas – which Green Energy Parks plans to convert into a food-safe liquid form.
Chris Negus, co-developer of Green Energy Parks, said Kentucky has the right mix of agricultural heritage and business-friendly policy to make the Arlington plant “the blueprint for what renewable energy development can look like across America.”
“We’re demonstrating that energy transition and rural economic growth are two sides of the same coin,” Negus said in the state press release.
The project is the largest business announcement on record for Carlisle County – and the first private sector development there in over a decade. In a recorded message played during Beshear’s weekly press conference, Carlisle County Judge Executive Greg Terry said Green Energy Parks’ announcement marks a “transformational moment” for the community.
“Our county is not just welcoming a business. We are planting the seeds for long term growth, opportunity and prosperity in a farming community built on hard work, resilience and innovation. Our project honors our agricultural roots while expanding our economic future,” Terry said.
Beshear’s office said the project will create 20 “high-wage” positions.
When the project is completed and operating at full capacity, the Carlisle County facility is expected to process around 575 tons of agricultural feedstock per day. That input is expected to help the development produce a little under 1.5 million British thermal units of renewable natural gas per year, and capture and liquify a little more than 72,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually.
